Large (more than 16-fold) differences in susceptibility to disruption of juvenile male reproductive development by 17 beta-estradiol (E-2) were detected between strains of mice. Effects of strain, E-2 dose, and the interaction of strain and E-2 dose on testes weight and spermatogenesis were all highly significant (P < 0.0001). Spermatid maturation was eliminated by low doses of E-2 in strains such as C57BL/6J and C17/Jls. In contrast, mice of the widely used CD-1 line, which has been selected for large litter size, showed Little or no inhibition of spermatid maturation even in response to 16 times as much E-2. Product safety bioassays conducted with animals selected for fecundity may greatly underestimate disruption of male reproductive development by estradiol and environmental estrogenic compounds.